hi, i just got back from the apple store and they are really keen for me to upgrade to a new laptop since my battery is old and the screen is cracked, so glad i found ifixit i would love to upgrade this puppy! gonna make it a real sleeper! styler hall wrote about sticking 16 gb of ram in his a 1342 ? is this a simply mather of ordering 3 4gb sticks ?aslo i currently have 4 gb and would like to upgrade to 8 ( or indeed 16) does that mean i need to buy all new sticks or can i continue to use the old one and stick a new one next to it ?

The A1342 will take up to 16 GB of RAM, however, there are only two RAM slots, so use two 8-GB RAM modules. Other World Computing (OWC) is a great reference source for info on exactly which RAM to use with which model; prices are usually much better on EBay though. Add an SSD from OWC and your machine will really scream!

Answering my own question, the clips re-engage when the lower case is correctly positioned. You can help them by gently pressing the lower case with your thumbs midway along the two short sides. When everything is correctly aligned the eight screw holes line up.

Rather than running your fingernail down the sides to free up the retaining clips, I found that using an old credit card, inserted about 1/4”, to run along the left and right side popped those end retaining clips right off with no problem. You may need to twist the card slightly when in the middle area to help pop those off.

Its hardly that big. It certainly requires a tri-wing screwdriver much smaller than a 5mm tri-wing screwdriver - "Y1" is probably 1mm. The smallest I had was a 2mm tri-wing screwdriver and it just worked ok.

My tri-wing screws were black, 2mm and totally seized up. I had to break the plastic around the screw holes in the battery, remove it and then un screw them with long nose pliers. Needless to say they are now replaced with Philips screws.

"Remove three 3.1 mm Phillips screws securing the battery near the edge of the upper case".

Using the tools I bought from iFixit, I have got this far, no worries :)

The channels underneath/around these screws appear damaged and will not allow the screw to unwind and come out, therefore, the screws are "stuck". (This is by no means an indictment of the mini screwdrivers.) Any suggestions to help, because the replacement battery will not fit with these screws in place. Thanks.

These last 3 screws were a bit** to get off. One of them actually would not come out but I managed to slip the battery out anyways. Maybe it nudged just enough. Getting it back in was okay, just slid it under. Fit was snug, had to be careful not to break or crimp the ribbon in front of the battery connector, as Joel stated. Simply snipped a piece of the plastic tab from the old battery and stood it up in this spot and slid the battery down, this kept the ribbon from crimping. Only one of these last 3 screws that I did get out, did I put back in. Not sure why they are there as the tabs that hold them are enough to hold the battery. All other screws and battery connector worked like a charm. Replaced the cover, turn it on and Whala!!! Only got a message that said I needed to reset the Date & Time. Got it on the charger now, as new battery only had 75% charge, so fingers crossed it will recharge at a 100% and last longer than the old battery before it's next charge. Good luck everyone!!

I just replaced the battery on my late 2009 mac and thanks to this and all the other detailed guides it was actually quite simple (save for those cursed tri-wings). Don't feed apple with money you can spend on better things. A battery-removel isn't one of them.

For those that have questions about the size of the bit, every article starts with "Tools". The tri-wing is size Y1 as the guide says. 5mm is the length of the screw itself, not the size of the bit.

Just replaced a battery myself. The replacement battery (from an ebay seller) is supposed to be genuine, but was missing the "Warning, do not remove the battery" sticker and the "Do not throw in the trash" sticker, and the main sticker was glossy with air bubbles. Not sure if fake or not. But have been working great this first night.

This guide was spot on. Followed every step, and used the iFixit kit when doing the repair.

I got the "Service Battery" warning after replacing my old "bloated" battery. Did I do something wrong during the process ('cause I did exactly the same as the guide) or is it the battery the faulty one (it worked just fine from my observation)? Or is it software related? Appreciate feedbacks... (^_^)

Thanks for the great guide. Taking my time it took only about 15 minutes beginning to end. . . a very simple procedure. Reviewing the instructions ahead of time I saw that I needed a tri-wing screwdriver, so I took a quick trip to Harbor Freight and purchased a electronics driver and bit kit. I saved my daughter a lot of money replacing the battery myself and I got some new tools in the bargain!

I successfully replaced the battery two weeks ago. Today, I needed to change the trackpad due to it having a mind of its own...followed the instructions on iFixit step by step (removing the battery and the trackpad and then reassembling), but when I tried to start up the computer it would not boot except when hooked up to its power supply. The battery icon at the top of the screen, when I clicked on it, states No Batteries Available. (I reinstalled the old weak battery as a check and got the same message). Any ideas or solutions? Thanks for any help!

Update: I took the computer to an Apple Authorized Repair Center. They first diagnosed the problem as the incorrect battery being installed, and after further examination determined the logic board was malfunctioning. They wanted well over $350 to replace the board; I will take care of this at a later date for a lower price! Be sure to disconnect the battery cable carefully, using your fingernails or a nonconductive spudger...I believe that's where I went wrong with the disassembly.

Newest update: Operated computer off of power supply since the logic board was malfunctioning. Found a new logic board on eBay ($150), and the seller offered to install it if I'd ship the computer to him which I did. The replacement board solved the problem...all I now need to do is to replace the old, weak battery sometime in the future (this time with the correct tools...a small Phillips driver, a tri-wing, and, most importantly, a nonconductive spudger).

I think I have the same issue with my Macbook white A1342 would you please provide me the information to the person who installed the new logic board. the reason why I want to fix mine is that I just bought a new battery and I really want to use it instead of it being a waste.

In response to the question about where to get the motherboard replaced I used an eBay seller to do so . I searched for "MacBook A1342 logic board repair" and found a few vendors who will do the repair for less than $150.00, plus S/H.

I swapped out my battery, everything seemed to go very smoothly, now my computer won't turn on. I tried putting the old battery back in, still no sign of life. Won't even come on with the power cord plugged in. Any suggestions?

You very likely knocked the keyboard ribbon cable our of place. It’s easy to do when changing out the battery on this model. Look at the guide to A1342 logic board replacement to see how to properly remove, and reseat the keyboard ribbon cable.

Bought my battery (A1342) and a Y1 screwdriver bit (I already had the PH-00), and I got through step 3 no problem. The problem that arose is that the tri-wing screws holding the battery on appear to be Y0, rather than Y1. As another commenter has noted, it looks like the screws are different: black rather than brass, with a smaller head. I'm pretty well boned until I can get hold of a smaller Y set.

Disappointing, since I've had good luck with iFixit how-tos in the past.

Completed the replacement last night. I used the tri wing from iFixit and an iFixit replacement battery. The only hiccup I encountered was in removing the old, original battery. The final screw on the bottom was over-tightened and it stripped. Everything else went well. After installing the new battery, and before turning the laptop on, I reset the SMC just in case. Everything is working perfectly and my laptop now has it's original approximately 9 of battery life.

Hi Chris, I'm attempting a battery change myself and one of the screws holding the battery down is also over-tight and stripped: I just can't get it out (though I'm working with the right tri-wing screw). How did you manage to pull yours out?

If your tri-wing screws are seized up as mine were, you can nibble away the plastic around the screw mounts on the battery with long nose pliers and a flat head driver enough to extract the battery. I then unscrewed them with the pliers. Have replaced tri screws with Philips.

Is it possible to remove the swollen battery, not replace it, and just use the computer while attached to the power source from then on?

Follow-Up, if you cannot use it without replacing the swollen battery, is it safe to briefly use the laptop with the swollen battery to remove personal files? (Battery is swollen enough that the track back has popped out of it's area.

My A1342 had a battery that swelled up and pushed the trackpad through the case, damaging the case en route.

I’ve successfully replaced the battery, but now the trackpad is flopping around due to the “notch” damage to the case. Does anyone have any tips for repairing such damage to the case? I otherwise love this oldie but goodie.

Two of my Tri-wing screws were immovable. My solution was putting a microdrop of WD-40 at the tip of an Exacto knife and spreading it around the screw. The knife tip also seemed to release the screw head from its environment. I don't know what part of this worked, but something did. The screws then came right out.

I tried to install this battery, but it is slightly different than the one in my machine and doesn’t quite fit. Comparing the two, it was clearly a problem with the three tab-like depressions that are meant to tuck under the three tabs at the bottom of the battery compartment. This new battery is slightly taller, causing it to not slip in nicely. Even applying some force doesn’t make it fit.